Missouri’s gun laws remain in the national spotlight and Kansas City’s efforts to reduce gun violence will be a subject on ABC’s program “Nightline” Thursday evening.

The program, which airs at 11:37 p.m. on KMBC, will compare Kansas City’s efforts to those in Oakland, California.

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Earlier this week, President Barack Obama cited a New York Times study that said since Missouri repealed its state background check in 2007, the homicide rate in the state has jumped. Critics have said the study is flawed.

The number of homicides in Kansas City was up in 2015. The city recorded 109 homicides, compared to 81 in 2014. The 2014 total was the lowest in decades.

Kansas City Mayor Sly James said the largest percentage increase of homicides last year was in domestic violence cases.

In 2012, Oakland has 126 homicides and Kansas City has 106. But since then, Oakland’s homicide rate has declined at a faster pace than Kansas City.

The “Nightline” report will discuss a push underway in Oakland to require that handguns and ammunition be locked away in unattended vehicles. There may also be a statewide vote in California to require a background check in buy ammunition.

The political climate in Missouri would make either proposal unlikely anytime soon.James will also be part of the “Nightline” report. He has complained that rural Missouri lawmakers don’t understand the problem of guns in large urban areas.

“If I can’t get the Legislature to move, then we’re probably not going to be very effective,” James said. “But what we will try to do is get people to move and force the Legislature to move.”

Gun laws continue to be a big Missouri issue. There are more than two dozen gun bills filed for the current session of the Legislature.